Murray County is a county located in the southern part of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. As of the 2010 census, the population was 13,488. This is a 6.9 percent increase from 12,623 at the 2000 census. The county seat is Sulphur. The county was named for William H. Murray, a member and president of the Oklahoma Constitutional Convention and later a Governor of Oklahoma.
McClain County is a county located in south central Oklahoma. As of the 2010 census, the population was 34,506. Its county seat is Purcell. The county was named for Charles M. McClain, an Oklahoma constitutional convention attendee.
Tishomingo is the largest city and the county seat of Johnston County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 3,034 at the 2010 census, a decline of 4.1 percent from 3,162 at the 2000 census. It was the first capital of the Chickasaw Nation, from 1856 until Oklahoma statehood in 1907. The city is home to Murray State College, a community college with an annual enrollment of 3,015 students. Tishomingo is part of the Texoma region.
Sulphur is a city in and county seat of Murray County, Oklahoma, United States. Founded by the Poteet tribe in 1837. This was long before the Barefoot clan or the Flowers had immigrated from neighboring Davis, Oklahoma. The population was 4,929 at the 2010 census, a 3.4 percent gain from 4,794 at the 2000 census. The area around Sulphur has been noted for its mineral springs, since well before the city was founded late in the 19th Century. The city received its name from the presence of sulfur in the water.
Davis is a city in Garvin and Murray counties in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The population was 2,683 at the 2010 census.
The Arbuckle Mountains are an ancient mountain range in south-central Oklahoma in the United States. They lie in Murray, Carter, Pontotoc, and Johnston counties. The granite rocks of the Arbuckles date back to the Precambrian Eon some 1.4 billion years ago which were overlain by rhyolites during the Cambrian Period. The range reaches a height of 1,412 feet above sea level. According to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS):
The Arbuckles contain the most diverse suite of mineral resources in Oklahoma: limestone, dolomite, glass sand, granite, sand and gravel, shale, cement, iron ore, lead, zinc, tar sands, and oil and gas; all these minerals are, or have been, produced commercially.
The Lake of the Arbuckles is a reservoir located in southern Oklahoma, 8 miles (13 km) southwest of Sulphur in Murray County. The lake covers 2,350 acres (950 ha) and is a principal water supply reservoir for the city of Ardmore, some 30 mi (48 km) to the southwest. It also supplies water to the cities of Sulphur, Davis, Wynnewood and a large oil refinery near Wynnewood. The lake also provides flood control, fish and wildlife habitat and recreation opportunities.
Chickasaw National Recreation Area is a National Recreation Area situated in the foothills of the Arbuckle Mountains in south-central Oklahoma near Sulphur in Murray County. It includes the former Platt National Park and Arbuckle Recreation District.
Turner Falls, an American waterfall, at 77 feet (23 m), is locally considered Oklahoma's tallest waterfall, although its height matches one in Natural Falls State Park. The falls are located on Honey Creek in the Arbuckle Mountains in south central Oklahoma, 6 miles (9.7 km) south of Davis.
The Chickasaw Nation is a federally recognized Native American nation, located in Oklahoma in the United States. The Chickasaw Nation originated in its homeland of the American Southeast, with territory in what are defined as modern-day Mississippi, Tennessee, Alabama and Kentucky.
Riverwind Casino is a casino located in Norman, Oklahoma that opened in 2006. The 219,000 square feet (20,300 m2) casino, owned and operated by the Chickasaw Nation is one of the largest in the state. In addition to the casino floor, the facility also has two restaurants, a lounge, a food court, several bars, valet parking and a 1500-seat theatre that hosts concerts. Riverwind also opened a 100-room adjoining hotel in February 2009. The casino is located in at the Interstate 35/State Highway 9 west junction.
South Central Oklahoma is an amorphous region in the state of Oklahoma, perhaps encompassing 10 counties. It is centered on the Arbuckle Mountains, an ancient, eroded range traversing some 70 miles (110 km) across the region, and surrounded by rivers and lakes, notably Lake Texoma, Lake Murray and Lake of the Arbuckles. For tourism purposes, the Oklahoma Department of Tourism has more narrowly defined South Central Oklahoma, which they refer to as Chickasaw Country, as being a seven-county region including Pontotoc, Johnston, Marshall, Garvin, Murray, Carter, and Love counties. A ten-county definition might also include Coal, Atoka, and Bryan counties, although the Department of Tourism includes those in Choctaw Country. The Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma covers the eastern third of the region. Its headquarters is in Durant, and its capitol building, now a museum, is in Tuskahoma. The Chickasaw Nation lies within the region, with the tribal capitol building located at Tishomingo and its headquarters in Ada. The Chickasaw Nation, which runs "Chickasawcountry.com"., promotes the idea of Chickasaw Country as the 13 south-central Oklahoma counties that comprise the Chickasaw Nation, being the Tourism Department’s seven counties plus Coal, Bryan, Jefferson, Stephens, Grady, and McClain counties.
Fort Washita is the former United States military post and National Historic Landmark located in Durant, Oklahoma on SH 199. Established in 1842 by General Zachary Taylor to protect citizens of the Choctaw and Chickasaw Nations from the Plains Indians it was later abandoned by Federal forces at the beginning of the American Civil War. Confederate troops held the post until the end of the war when they burned the remaining structures. It was never reoccupied by the United States military. After years in private hands the Oklahoma Historical Society bought the fort grounds in 1962 and restored the site. Today the Fort Washita Historic Site and Museum is a tourist attraction and hosts several events throughout the year.
Fort Arbuckle was constructed by the US Army in 1850 to counter raids by Plains Indian tribes on immigrant trains heading west to California and on the settlements of Choctaw and Chickasaw nations in Indian Territory.
WinStar World Casino and Resort is an American tribal casino and hotel located in Thackerville, Oklahoma, near the Oklahoma–Texas state line. It is owned and operated by the Chickasaw Nation. The casino opened as the WinStar Casinos in 2004, and was expanded and renamed WinStar World Casino in 2009; its 600,000 square feet (56,000 m2) of casino floor made it the world's largest casino. In August 2013, WinStar Resorts completed a major expansion project, which added a new 1000-room second hotel tower that was divided into two phases; this also added a new casino that is attached to the tower. As a result of the completion of this expansion, the casino overtook Foxwoods Resort Casino to become the largest casino in the United States and one of the largest in the world based on gaming floor space. WinStar has over 8,400 electronic games, a 55-table poker room, 100 total table games, Racer's off-track betting, high limit room, keno, and bingo.
Chisholm Trail Casino is a casino that opened in Duncan, Oklahoma in October, 2004. The 22,000-square-foot (2,000 m2) casino is owned and operated by the Chickasaw Nation and is open 24 hours daily. Located along the site of the historic Chisholm Trail cattle drive, the casino is five miles north of downtown Duncan on Highway 81, south of Highway 7. Chisholm Trail is owned and operated by the Chickasaw Nation. The casino is 70 miles south of Norman, Oklahoma, and the Nation’s sister gaming facility, Riverwind Casino. Chisholm Trail is 100 miles northwest of WinStar World Casino, another Chickasaw Nation gaming center, located in Thackerville, Oklahoma.
Gold Mountain Casino is a Native American casino in Ardmore, Oklahoma, owned and operated by the Chickasaw Nation. Originally opened in 2002 as Ardmore Gaming, the facility has grown steadily and today features more than 300 gaming machines. The casino is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The 8,620 sq ft (801 m2) casino is located on the corner of P Street N.E. and Sam Noble Parkway, and can be accessed via Interstate 35, exit 33. It is a short distance from the Ardmore Convention Center and the Hardy Murphy Coliseum. Gold Mountain is about 34 miles north of WinStar World Casino in Thackerville, Oklahoma, and 77 miles south of Riverwind Casino in Norman, Oklahoma, which are also Chickasaw-owned gaming facilities.
The Ada Gaming Center is a Native American casino in Ada, Oklahoma. The center is the first gaming facility that was founded by the Chickasaw Nation, having started out as a bingo hall in 1983. The 22,482 sq ft (2,088.6 m2) facility includes a bar, the Traditions Bar, and a restaurant, the Double Down Grill, and 9,220 sq ft (857 m2) of gaming space. The center has seven tables for blackjack and Ultimate Texas Hold 'em, and more than 330 electronic gaming machines.
The historic Chickasaw Nation Capitols are located in Tishomingo, Oklahoma. The property consists of Chickasaw Council House Museum and the Chickasaw Nation Capitol building, which has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since November 5, 1971.
SaltCreek Casino, located in Pocasset, Oklahoma, is the first casino to open in Grady County, Oklahoma. It is the 18th casino owned and operated by the Chickasaw Nation. The casino held a ribbon cutting ceremony on December 18, 2012 and officially opened its doors on December 31, 2012. The 36,000 sq ft (3,300 m2) casino, features 600 different gaming stations, as well as four table games - three Blackjack tables and one for Ultimate Texas Hold’em. At SaltCreek Casino there is one restaurant and one bar. The Brook Bar located in the center of the casino, seats 16, and serves an assortment of beer, wine and liquor. The Fork Café serves home-style food such as chicken fried steak, hamburgers and blue-plate specials. The casino's gift shop, Reflections, also sells Bedré Fine Chocolate, which is also tribally owned.
